Payton was hopeful to play last Saturday and was questionable for this contest, but he's clearly not fully healthy. Ian Clark, Wesley Johnson and Tim Frazier should continue their minutes boost, but Payton is due back very shortly.

Fantasy News

Russell Westbrook - G - Oklahoma City Thunder

Russell Westbrook (personal) was at shootaround Monday and will be evaluated before Monday's game.

Westbrook was listed on the injury report as out for personal, not his ankle, but that still is the key to coming back. He just welcomed a pair of twins into the world, but this is also around the time he could return from his ankle injury. He was initially ruled out for this game so we'd still lean that way, but he's looking like a true game-time decision. Watch for updates.

Davis Bertans (concussion protocol) has been ruled out for Monday's game.

Bertans was expected to miss this game after missing Sunday's game. There's currently no timetable for him. His absence opens up minutes for Dante Cunningham, who will continue to start. Jakob Poeltl will get more minutes of the bench as he tries to turn around the disastrous start he's had to his San Antonio career.

Gasol was expected to miss all of San Antonio's roadtrip and we have not gotten word on his timetable. Dante Cunningham will continue to start, while Jakob Poeltl will get extra looks off the bench. With Rudy Gay (rest) questionable, the Spurs frontcourt could be in for some heavy lifting against Anthony Davis and co.

Gay is a must-own player right now. He's been providing consistent mid-late round value when on the court, but knowing Gregg Popovich, he will get a few games off for rest. Check his status closer to game-time.

According to coach Fred Hoiberg, Kris Dunn (sprained MCL) has started doing straight-ahead running and there's no change in his timetable.

The original timetable was 4-to-6 weeks and today marks the fourth week since Dunn suffered the injury. The Bulls are not rushing any of their young players back from injury, so do not expect Dunn to return soon – he's still probably a few weeks away. Over the past two weeks, Shaq Harrison has played 20.0 minutes per game off the bench and has cracked the top-120 per game value, while Ryan Arcidiacano has been starting but is barely in the top-200. Those two are the only ones worth a look while Dunn is out.

Wade has been away after the birth of his daughter for just over a week, which was how long he was expected to miss. He is putting his family first during his last season in the association and no one can blame him for that. Once he returns, he will probably sap minutes from all the wing players, but Wayne Ellington is a candidate to lose the most.

Goran Dragic (right knee injury) had his knee drained Monday morning and the hope is for him to return next week.

The Heat realized the injury needed to be taken care of for Dragic to fully heal. It was just fluid that was drained and they are hoping the inflammation dies down by next week. You can comfortably rule him out for three games before checking back on his status. Tyler Johnson is worth picking up as a streamer for the week while Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow should continue to see ball-handling duties as well.

According to Marc Stein, the Grizzlies have been in "extensive discussions" with free agent center Joakim Noah.

After Tom Thibodeau had no interest in bringing in Noah, it was probably a sign that he was done, but it appears he may get another opportunity to prove himself. Noah was working on his jumpshot over the summer in an effort to adapt to the modern game. Noah has a lot of tred on the tires and would not be fantasy relevant on the Grizzlies, barring a Derrick Rose-esque comeback.

Howard's preseason injury that stretch into the regular season was a piriformis strain, which is a muscle in the rear. He apparently had trouble sitting down to put his socks on before Sunday's game and ended up leaving without returning. If he misses time, Ian Mahinmi likely starts at center. Jeff Green and Kelly Oubre would be the ones with increased fantasy value.

Lauri Markkanen (elbow) will participate in non-contact portions of practice, according to coach Fred Hoiberg.

Markkanen is slightly behind his original timetable, but the Bulls are rightfully being cautious with him. The reports from late last week were another week-or-two away from contact drills, then one week after that before returning to game action. If Markkanen is out there somehow he should be stashed at this point. He was a top-70 player in 9-cat as a rookie, but with Wendell Carter, Jabari Parker and healthy Zach LaVine, top-100 value going forward is a more reasonable projection.